The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-06-29
The Pending Treaty with Russia.
IL 4 h. Z ,a.olia L..

1
Poland a century ago: we have quietly watched
her stealthy absorption of Turkestan and her ST.
lent enroachments upon the Afghan highway to
India; we have seen her brutally violating the
plainest good faith with her helpless Bulgarian
| kindred. kidnapping their Prince in the dead of
night and attempting to control their affairs
| against the protest Of the people, and we have
been comforted with the reflection that we, at
least were beyond the reach of the blighting in
| fuence of her military power. well as her
mendacious diplomacy.
| But recent occurrences show that she has her
eye upon US, also: that she desires, not indeed
our possessions, nor an offensive or defensive al
lance, which would be entirely worthless to her.
but our moral and legislative support for the
perpetuaton of her despotism. She asks from
US a treaty by which the American people shall
become the hunter OF all the enemies of the
| Gar
1t is not many days since the following sp-
| peared in our public press:
''WAsH1NGToN. May %.
/ Russian papers just received make plain the
| pending extradition treaty with the United
/ States and throw new light on the Russian pur-
| pose. The Novoe Vremya of st. PETERSBURG in
| article on the treaty says: The Russo-Amer-
lean treaty is not yet published. it is not yet
| approved by the Senate of the United States
| However, nobody in our government doubts that
| the Senate of the great transatlantic Republic
| will acceptit without any change, and the United
| States will give to the civilized world the first
| instance of a correct and just discrimination be-
| tween political crimes and ordinary capital
| crimes, committed under the disguise of ''po-
| litcal struggle
'The Russian press, which is under pressure
| of the imperial censure, by this welcome of the
| Russian American extraditiou treaty in its orig
inal shape. makes it plain that the point il the
| treaty which Russia considers of the greatest
importance is this: That the United States gov
| eminent shall declare that the nihilist move
ment in Russia has political meaning at all.
and that any revolution which should endauger
the Cars lfe-even war for constitutional gov
ernment-shall be declared in advance by the
American Republic. SO far a treaty de-
clare it, simply plot to commit murder.
This is a concession. we'll confession,
which the Russian government has not yet got
| from any power except Germany and Austria.
No other country has formally agreed to surren-
der Russian political criminals.
Recently. the Russian government tried its
utmost in influencing England to deny the right
OF asylum to Russian political criminals, but the
British government remained true to its tradi-
| tional idea of asylum. Article Nv OF the treaty
concluded between Russia and England Feb g
| 1887, follows: "A criminal is not to be
extradlted if the crime for which his extradiron
prove that his extradition is demanded with
| view to prosecute or punish him for crime of a
| political nature"
The Russian American treaty also excludes
extraditon for political crimes (Art. 81, but the
| following exception makes this article null and
void. Murder and manslauehter, comprising
! chief magistrate of the state, of any mem
Der of his family, as we'll as az attempt to COM
nit or participate in the said crimes. shall not
be considered an offense Of political character"
| 1t is common principle among free peoples,
| that the right of extradition shall never be
claimed for the recovery of political offenders
| The greatest reformers of the century have been
protected by this ple-MazZini, Garlbadi,
| Victor Hugo, Kossuth. Castelar,. These very
names are an inspiration to liberty, which would
have been stif1ec if the claim Of political crime"
could have been made the pretext for their ex
tradition and punishment ANY other rule
would make all governments on earth the allies
of each other in the maintenance of every exist
ing tyranny.
The destruction of human life is, unfortunate
ly, too often inseparable incident of revolu-
ton. Even in constitutional monarchies the act
of treason is defined, ITO compass the death of
the King" But in Russia the Gar, against
whom all revolutionary efforts must be directed,
since he embodies in his person the whole state,
this Car is the first to ask that he and his
family shall be personally exempt from the
present salutary rule of international jurispru-
dence He asks US to enact law which shall
provide that when the cloud of revolution shall
break over his empire the killing of his helpless
and perhaps unwilling instruments may go I'M
punished but that the blow aimed at himself.
the master shall be followed by the surrender
of the fugitives. to be buried alive in the mines
of Siberia, to be committed to the hand of the
executioner. or worst of all, to be consigned to
the refined tortures of the Troubetskoi Ravelin.
Before we grant this special favor to Alexander.
let US examine carefully the character of the
government which demands it. Against whom
the provisions of this article directed? From
what people does the Gar solicit this special in
references? What will be the consequences of
acQuieScence!
The government which asks this exemption is
the only one in the civilized world which allows
no rights whatever to any human being within its
domain. except the autocrat Men talk of the
emancipation of the serfs, but serfs and masters
alike live day in utter subsection to the will of
the Emperor. In our system of African slavery
there were some limits to the masters authority;
the power of life and death were beyond him.
But there are no bounds to the power of the
Gar. Not only the minutest relations of
life subject to his caprices, but life itself is
wholly dependent upon his will Not only is
his power theoretically unlimited, but 1t is act
ualy exercised in manner capricious as to
out age the conscience of mankind. 1t is for
hidden to the millions of Little Russia to print
sell book paper in their native tongue The
literature of vast people is thus annihilated.
The constitution granted to Poland at the begin
ming Of this century was faithlessy Withdrawn
by the mere exercise of arbitrary will, and those
who resisted even passively and without at
tempt at force or rebellion. were despoIed OF
their property and banished to distant provinces.
To the Polish subject it is forbidden to-day that
his child shall learn his own language, even In
the schools of his own capital. In systematic
effort to enslave the minds of the people, educa-
ton is stfed in the universities. the polytech-
mics. and even the primary schools, while no
means whatever afforded to the great mass
of the subjects of Russia to acquire even the
most rudimentary branches of instruction.
The press is throstled by an arbitrary and
| unjust censorship. Newspapers are capriciously
SUSPENDED ana suppressed; standard WorkS on
political science are forbidden and even the
oral utterance of prescribed opinions is merci-
lessly punished The agents of the secret police
swarm every where. Arbitrary and unwarrant-
able searches in great number are made at dead
of night in private households Men are i'm
prisoned for years. awaiting trial for offenses,
when there is no proof of their guilt. and by
system of administrative exile thousands
banshed and transported to distant and inhos-
pirable regions. without conviction or any form
of trial
The sovereign who seeks our assistance in
hunting down the men who plot against him is
the one who has forbidden the people of Bull
garia to punish the conspirators who kidnapped
their beloved ruler although these conspirators
arrested on Bulgarian soil. This is the
man and this is the government which asks our
aid for the perpetuation Of it's iniquities.
Against whom does the Gar ask this special
protection? Against tho only men in Russia
who dare to strike a blow for their liberties;